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The Workplace Realignment

Helping businesses connect with employees on mental health needs

Introducing The Workplace Realignment

We’re calling on organisations to better understand employee expectations and overall sentiment towards work in a post-pandemic world, to deliver tailored mental health solutions.

As Australia emerges from the initial waves of disruption, employee expectations around the role of work are continuing to shift. A more diverse, multigenerational workforce is taking on new challenges, and factors in the economic landscape and broader environment are continuing to impact mental health.

Adding to the volatile economic environment are pervasive issues like increased pressure on workload. With four distinct generations now working together, each is feeling the brunt of the ongoing pressures differently, making the delivery of effective workplace mental health support more complex.

Caption: Australian workplaces are facing new pressures

Caption: With new research revealing 38% of surveyed employees often feel fatigued and burnt out at work*. That equates to 2.9 million Australian employees.

The research was commissioned by Allianz and conducted by YouGov in accordance with the Australian Polling Council standard. The survey is a nationally representative sample comprised of 1500 employees (middle managers and below) and 521 managers (senior managers and above) in Australia aged 18 years and older.

Caption: And claims data from Allianz Australia shows that days off due to mental health have increased 39% since pre-pandemic times.

Workers Compensation claims data comparing days off for active primary psychological claims from July 2018 to June 2023, across all Allianz portfolios including Allianz Australia's Underwritten Workers’ Compensation, NSW Managed Fund (for both private and public sector employees) and Victorian Managed Fund Portfolios. I think there has been a permanent shift in the workplace during the pandemic because people had time to reflect and look inward.

Amy Rutstein, former office worker: I left my most recent role because I had enough of the pressure and I saw that affect on my health and it wasn't fair to myself. Most importantly.

Caption: Introducing the workplace realignment

Julie Mitchell, Chief General Manager of Personal Injury, Allianz Australia: Organisations are responding in a positive way to workplace mental health. But in the face of increasing complexity and more generations working alongside each other, there is a real shift for organisations to respond to workplace mental health. The Workplace Realignment encourages employees and managers to work together on understanding what their evolving needs are in the workplace to create mentally healthy workplaces. At Allianz we believe that the expectations on employees and managers continue to shift. Therefore, we encourage organisations to think through practical solutions that can improve the mental health outcomes for their employees.

Dr. Mark Cross, Consultant Psychiatrist: Employees want workplaces to be more empathic, emotionally intelligent places, so that speaks directly to culture. Culture needs to shift.

Julie Mitchell: That's true.

And also organisations can work to create psychologically safe workspaces for their people, where individuals can bring their true self to work that will generate creativity, productivity and help contribute to a healthy workplace environment.

It is crucial for organisations to continue to invest in holistic employee value propositions and mental health policies and procedures. We also know if changes aren't made, we're likely to see an increase in psychological injuries and ongoing employee turnover.

Caption: This is the equivalent of 1.4 million employees saying they are very likely to resign

Caption: Keep scrolling to learn how you can spark a Workplace Realignment.

“Ongoing disruptions have continued to fuel a disconnect between managers, employees, and organisations on the most important workplace mental health issues.

This disconnect continues to have a serious impact on workplace engagement and employee retention, and in turn, is driving a worrying trend of increasing mental health claims in the workplace.”

Julie Mitchell, Chief General Manager of Personal Injury, Allianz Australia

Why a workplace realignment?

  • Our research1 has shown that issues such as the cost of living, adoption of new technologies, work-life balance, career development, and organisational support dominate how employees measure mental health and overall satisfaction at work. While the direct impact of the pandemic has mostly passed, lingering issues such as employee burnout and talent shortages continue to impact the mental health of staff. New concerns due to economic uncertainties have also come to the fore.
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  • These headwinds signal that now is the time for a Workplace Realignment. It’s time to address evolving workplace mental health concerns and make sure there’s a greater alignment between managers and employees on mental health needs within the modern workforce.

Our research shows why a workplace realignment is needed

Financial pressures are impacting job satisfaction

35% of surveyed employees rank cost of living higher than fatigue and burnout as negatively impacting job satisfaction (33%). Almost a quarter state they feel they’re underpaid for their work (24%).

Workplace issues are affecting each generation differently

Gen Z (27%) and Gen X (32%) were least likely to state they were satisfied with work and are also feeling the pressure of fatigue and burnout the most, (Gen X (45%) and Gen Z (48%). Millennial employees were most likely to state that the speed of technology changes, such as the adoption of AI in the workplace, is making them feel out of date and is negatively impacting their experience at work (17%). 

Psychological claims are continuing to rise

New claims data saw a 46% increase in active mental health (psychological) claims and a 36% increase in cost since pre-pandemic times. Psychological Workers' Compensation active claims were responsible for around 69 employee leave days per claim. This is a 39% increase in the average days taken off work due to mental health in the last four years.

Employees and managers are divided on the adequacy of mental health support

While 60% of surveyed managers say their organisation has gone above and beyond to provide support and systems to create a mentally healthy workplace, just 33% of employees share the same sentiment. 

Employee flight still on the cards despite cost of living pressure

41% of surveyed employees are likely to consider leaving their current organisation in the next 6 to 12 months, which equates to 1.4 million Australian workers saying they’re very likely to do so. 

Based on figures from YouGov The Workplace Realignment research, YouGov (2023). (1,500 workers and 521 managers surveyed.)

Allianz Workers' Compensation claims data comparing primary psychological active claims for FY19 compared to FY23, across all Allianz portfolios including; Allianz Australia's Underwritten Workers' Compensation, NSW Managed Fund (for both private and public sector employees) and Victorian Managed Fund Portfolios.

“Displaying empathy and establishing meaningful connections with employees is the first step to developing trust and to spark The Workplace Realignment. In this environment, employees are more likely to feel heard and that their concerns are being addressed by their workplace.” 

Dr Mark Cross, Consultant Psychiatrist and Author

Our tips for sparking The Workplace Realignment

While issues in the workplace are becoming more complex and proving harder to solve, managers must focus on responding to the direct needs of their employees, to maintain a more mentally healthy workplace culture. 

 Learn how you can spark a Workplace Realignment through: 

Important conversations 

Addressing the tricky topics relating to workplace mental health is a crucial step in supporting wellbeing. This is especially important amidst anxiety around new technology adoption, and in alleviating employee fear associated with speaking up.
Only 31% of employees speak up at work when faced with an issue.1
Millennials are the generation feeling the brunt of rapid technology change the most, with almost one in five saying it negatively impacts their experience at work (17%).
Read the important conversations toolkits for managers (PDF, 1.8MB)
Read the important conversations toolkits for employees (PDF, 1.4MB)
1Only 31% of surveyed employees who had changed their approach or attitude to work in the past 12 months now speak up at work when faced with an issue.

Help alleviate fear or anxiety of speaking up

  • Invest in communication and performance management training for leaders.
  • Establish a diverse and appropriately trained peer support network. 
  • Foster a ‘speak up culture’ through regular check-ins.
  •  Implement anonymous reporting mechanisms and regular feedback processes.

Address anxiety around new technology adoption

  • Investigate to understand what factors are causing the anxiety.
  • Ensure employees feel relevant by developing their technological capabilities.
  • Ensure clear processes and policies are in place to communicate workplace concerns.

Developing leader capability

Upskilling managers and building strong leaders is a necessary step in addressing unconscious bias, and in the diverse mental health needs of your employees.
One in five surveyed Australian employees believe their manager would overlook them for a senior role due to their age.
Surveyed Millennials (42%) and Gen Z (38%) employees believe their manager feels they’re ‘too young’ to complete their tasks effectively.
41% of surveyed Australian employees would like to see their organisation promote empathic and emotionally intelligent work environments.
Check out our national training calendar

Address unconscious bias

  • Develop a matrix that provides transparency around access to career progression and opportunities.
  • Invest in leader upskilling with unconscious bias and emotional intelligence training.
  • Recruit for diversity and use processes free from bias, such as diverse interview panels.

Support diverse mental health needs

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  • Actively recognise the need for individual mental health support.
  • Regularly review and update policies that address mental health.
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  • Offer a diverse range of people and culture programs for individual career and life stages planning early in career to transitioning to retirement.
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  • Provide wellbeing education and resources that cover a diverse range of topics.

Fostering balance between work and life

A work environment that facilitates balance helps address challenges with burnout and encourages employees to set healthy work-related boundaries.
40% of surveyed Australian employees who had changed their approach or attitude to work in the past 12 months are now more aware of the importance of having a work–life balance.
One in five surveyed Australian employees don’t have a say in their flexible working conditions.
Surveyed Gen X (45%) and Gen Z (48%) are more likely to be feeling the pressure of fatigue and burnout than Millennials (30%) and Baby Boomers (43%).
Finding balance in the workplace (PDF, 632 KB)

Address challenges with burnout

  • Focus on clear communication during peak periods in workload and ensure employees feel safe to speak up if they’re overwhelmed. 

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  • Ensure appropriate resource planning to alleviate bottlenecks and address peak work periods.
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  • Ensure workloads are reasonable and achievable, supported by mentorship and training.

Support work-life boundaries

  •  Ensure employee motivators, such as flexible working, are addressed and tailored solutions implemented.
  • Set clear expectations about working hours and work communication outside of these hours.
  •  Encourage open and safe dialogue with employees on what balance looks like for them.

Reward and recognition processes

Having clear systems and processes for acknowledging employee effort, work ethic, performance, and attitude helps address employee dissatisfaction in remuneration, and declining job satisfaction and engagement.
Almost a quarter (24%) of surveyed Australian employees feel they’re underpaid at work.
Most surveyed Australian employees say cost of living pressures (35%) and fatigue and burnout (33%) are negatively impacting their job satisfaction
Gen Z employees were least likely to state they were satisfied with work
Read ‘driving motivation through structure’ (PDF, 834 KB)

Address dissatisfaction in remuneration

  • Understand your employees’ career aspirations and ensure actionable and tangible goals are included in career development plans.
  • Introduce formal intrinsic and extrinsic reward systems and encourage peer-to-peer recognition.
  • Make sure employees are educated about your complete benefits package.
  • Be transparent regarding the regular review of remuneration, to ensure salaries are benchmarked in line with market.

Enhance job satisfaction, engagement and motivation

  • Allocate time for regular, open and important conversations.

  • Build social connection and relationships within teams through team activities and collaboration. 

  • Consider ways to collaboratively design work so it’s meaningful.
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  • Ensure people leaders know how to identify individual motivational factors and can develop strategies to address them.

“Monolithic approaches to supporting mentally healthy workplaces aren’t sustainable. Organisations must address changing employee expectations, by acknowledging their concerns and offering mental health and wellbeing programs aligned to expectations. This demands a holistic view of an employee’s workplace experience, including mental health support, engagement, culture, remuneration, career progression and retention activities.” 

Julie Mitchell, Chief General Manager of Personal Injury, Allianz Australia
Discover more of our research on workplace mental health, including practical tips you can implement in your organisation. 

About the research

The research was commissioned by Allianz and conducted by YouGov in accordance with the Australian Polling Council standard. The survey is a nationally representative sample comprised of 1,500 employees (middle managers and below), and 521 managers (senior managers and above) in Australia aged 18 years and older. 

This study was conducted online between 23 May 2023 and 31 May 2023. Following the completion of interviewing, the data was weighted by age, gender, and region to reflect the latest ABS population estimates.

The generations are defined by:

1. Gen Z (1997 - 2009)
2. Millennials (1981 - 1996)
3. Gen X (1965 - 1980)
4. Baby Boomer (1946 - 1964)
5. Silent (1918 - 1945)

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